CHR asks Myanmar counterpart to act on ‘gross rights violations’

THE Philippines’ Commission on Human Rights (CHR) urged its Myanmar counterpart to take action — sounding the alarm over the continued killings, violent dispersals, and “other gross human rights violations” in the now military-controlled country.

“We deem it our duty to speak out against atrocities and [express] deep concern over the silence of the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC),” it said.

“As [an] institution that we have worked with for so long in the NHRI (National Human Rights Institution) networks that we are part of, we implore for them to do something about the human rights violations being committed against their people,” the agency added.

The CHR emphasized that it is among its duties to call out its fellow institutions, especially when they are trapped in situations where people are evidently suffering from abuses that “even the young are not spared.”

“We believe that it is imperative to act quickly and with fortitude in responding to this urgent situation,” it said, pertaining to its Myanmar counterpart. “We remind them that the international community will be behind them as support for whatever action they will take for the promotion and protection of human rights.”

The commission reiterated that they only want to ensure the rights of the people are promoted and protected, in accordance with the international human rights standards.

“On the crossroads of history, silence in the face of injustice has only ever emboldened the perpetrators,” it highlighted. “May the MNHRC be guided by the continuing cries for help of the people they are called to serve.”

At least 543 people have been killed by junta forces in Myanmar, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.